Kidney Transplant Tied to Better Survival vs. Dialysis

(HealthDay News) – Kidney transplantation is associated with superior treatment and patient survival compared to intensive home hemodialysis (IHHD; ≥16 hours/week), according to a study published online May 22 in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

The researchers observed 285 treatment failures or deaths. There was a reduced risk of these incidents in transplant recipients compared to IHHD patients (relative hazard for living donor recipients, 0.45; for standard criteria donor recipients, 0.39; and for expanded criteria donor recipients, 0.42). There was a lower hospitalization rate in the first year of treatment for IHHD patients compared to standard criteria donor recipients, as well as a lower rate in the first three months of treatment compared to living donor and expanded criteria donor recipients.

"Kidney transplantation is associated with superior treatment and patient survival, but higher early rates of hospitalization, compared with IHHD," the authors write.